PCL Asia launches Rising Stars U19 to fast-track junior talent

Pickleball Champions League Asia unveiled PCL Rising Stars (U19) on January 10, 2026, a new youth initiative designed to discover, nurture, and elevate elite players under 19 across the region. The program creates a competitive and developmental pipeline with an athlete-first philosophy that prioritizes fairness, exposure, and long-term potential — an important step as the sport scales in Asia.

Rising Stars centers on high-level regional play organized around mixed-gender teams of two male and two female players. Teams will progress through provincial, national, and regional qualifiers to reach a culminating Finals. PCL Asia expects more than 1,000 players from at least 10 countries to take part, positioning Rising Stars as one of the largest youth pickleball competitions ever staged in Asia.

“Pickleball is growing rapidly across Asia, and it is critical that youth development keeps pace with the sport’s momentum,” said Alex Yuen, President of PCL. “Rising Stars is about building the foundation properly by investing in young talent, professional structure, and long-term opportunity.”

The Finals will be hosted at the Asia Elite Pickleball Academy (AEPA), currently under development at the Beijing Haidian Foreign Language Experimental School - Hainan Campus. AEPA — a joint venture between the school and Ramsports, China’s leading pickleball brand — is being designed to meet international competition standards with professional-grade courts, expert coaching, and full event infrastructure. The site is already recognized for Olympic-level athlete training in sports such as tennis, equestrian, and fencing, and PCL Asia frames AEPA as a strategic, long-term investment that could support residential and visiting programs for juniors and professionals alike.

A standout feature of Rising Stars is access: the winning team and select standout athletes from the Finals will be eligible for scholarships to AEPA, providing pathways to world-class training and education. That scholarship component ties elite competition directly to development opportunities, helping juniors bridge the gap between grassroots play and professional aspirations.

For players, coaches, and clubs, Rising Stars alters the roadmap. The mixed-team format rewards balanced skill across genders and emphasizes doubles tactics, rotation discipline, and court awareness. National bodies and local clubs will be central to running qualifiers and scouting talent, and the scale of the event promises increased exposure for juniors aiming for international competition.

Our two cents? If you’re a junior player or coach eyeing the pipeline, start building balanced squads (two men, two women), sharpen doubles skills—third-shot drops and kitchen control—and touch base with your local federation about qualifier timelines. This is a real chance to turn regional court time into scholarship and high-performance opportunity.